MountainView nurses say hospital’s maternity ward unsafe for patients

Labor and transportation nurses astatine MountainView Hospital spoke retired Tuesday astir what they described arsenic unsafe conditions for patients owed to inadequate numbers of nursing staff.

When determination are precocious volumes of patients, “There’s not capable unit to safely, appropriately supply the champion attraction that we can,” said Nicole Taylor, a caregiver successful the hospital’s labour and transportation unit.

Nurses are often dispersed bladed among excessively galore patients, she said, a occupation that has lone intensified during the COVID-19 pandemic. But blaming a nationalist shortage of nurses whitethorn beryllium an oversimplification

“It is my content that there’s not a shortage of nurses. There’s a shortage of radical who are consenting to enactment successful unsafe conditions,” said Taylor, the main caregiver typical for National Nurses Organizing Committee-Nevada/National Nurses United, which represents astir 950 nurses astatine the infirmary successful the northwest Las Vegas Valley.

Flanked by fractional a twelve different nurses from the unit, Taylor spoke to members of the quality media from a parking batch crossed the thoroughfare from the infirmary during an lawsuit organized by the union, which represents astir 950 nurses astatine the hospital. The national and the infirmary are presently successful declaration negotiations.

A caregiver assigned to 1 diligent is really taking attraction of 2 — the mother-to-be successful labour and her unborn child. “One of them you can’t see,” Taylor said, “and that tin beryllium scary astatine times.”

There person been times erstwhile large patients crossed the infirmary successful the intensive attraction portion with COVID-19 person been disconnected fetal monitoring for “an hr oregon two” arsenic a effect of inadequate staffing, Taylor said successful an interrogation earlier the event. She said she knew of nary harm done to the women oregon their babies arsenic a result.

Taylor said she hoped that the national and infirmary absorption could “come unneurotic astatine the array to find solutions.”

A typical of MountainView, a Sunrise Health System infirmary owned by HCA, did not instantly respond to a petition for comment. The infirmary has a Level III newborn intensive attraction portion for critically sick newborns and premature infants.

This is simply a processing story. Check backmost for updates.

Contact Mary Hynes astatine mhynes@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-383-0336. Follow @MaryHynes1 connected Twitter.